My Mother’s Castle

After the summer holiday, the family returns to Marseille, with Marcel still yearning for the hills of Provence. The city feels distant from the countryside he loves, setting up a wistful tone for what comes next. The journey back foreshadows the long, winding path they must travel to reach their holiday destination again.

While out in the hills collecting thyme, Marcel encounters Isabelle, a spirited girl with a vivid imagination. They quickly imagine a future where they can play together at her house, laying the groundwork for an unusual friendship. The encounter marks the beginning of a series of strange adventures in the countryside above Marseille.

On his first visit to Isabelle's house, Marcel meets her mother, an eccentric woman who disapproves of his scruffy appearance. The meeting foreshadows the odd atmosphere and social rules that will govern their interactions. It sets the tone for Isabelle's family to loom large over Marcel's visits.

On a subsequent visit, Marcel meets Isabelle's father, who drinks absinthe to fuel his poetic composition. Isabelle stages games in which Marcel is made to dress up as a dog, a soldier, and a slave, all under her capricious commands. The odd rituals deepen Marcel's unease about the girl and her family.

During their play, Isabelle feeds Marcel a grasshopper after commanding him to close his eyes and open his mouth. Lili and Paul, observing from a distance, report the scene to their father. He forbids Marcel from continuing to meet 'that crazy girl', limiting their contact.

On the way to their holiday home, a canal worker offers a spare key that would let them pass through several locked doors along the towpath. Marcel's father, though honest and cautious about trespassing, eventually accepts the key after much persuasion from the family for use in an emergency. The promise of a shorter journey tempts them to take the risk.

Using the key, the family reduces travel time and begins visiting the holiday home more often on weekends. They still fear discovery with each unlocked door, but over time they encounter the owners and groundsmen who are friendly toward their intrusions. The canal shortcut becomes a recurring, uneasy routine.

At the start of the summer holidays, Marcel's mother feels a deep fear about meeting the estate owner. When they reach the final door, they discover it has been padlocked, signaling further risk. The family becomes anxious about the potential cost to their livelihoods and reputation.

The caretaker files a report about the padlock, prompting a confrontation with the canal workers who threaten prosecution for the unlawful padlocking of the doors. The tension escalates as the workers demand accountability. The matter edges toward a climactic resolution.

In the clash that follows, the canal workers coerce completion of their intervention and the caretaker eventually withdraws the complaint. The padlock ends up on the gate while the key is given to the caretaker's dog, effectively preventing anyone from leaving the estate and sealing the shortcut. The family is left with the consequences of their risky shortcut.

In the epilogue, Uncle Jules hires a carriage for the family, signaling a change in fortunes. The narration jumps five years into the future, skipping ahead from the hill and canal episodes. The carriage ride marks a transition toward the adult phases of Marcel's life.

Five years later, Marcel's mother has died, and Lili and Paul face grim fates: Paul dies at 31 in the countryside, and Lili is killed during the First World War in 1917. Marcel becomes the sole survivor of their childhood circle. These losses define the distance between childhood memories and adulthood.

Marcel grows into a successful film director, and his company purchases a large old house in the Marseille area to convert into a film studio. The move symbolizes his reconciliation with the world he once escaped as a child and his return to where his memories began. The studio anchors his career in the very landscape that shaped him.

While touring the grounds of the new studio, Marcel recognizes the familiar door from his childhood journey. In a burst of rage, he grabs a rock and smashes the door, symbolically breaking the last tie to the past. The act closes the film on a visceral note of release and resentment.